changing incidence of cesarean section

This study was undertaken to estimate the caesarean delivery rate in Al-Salam Hospital at Sadah in Yemen Arab Republic. The caesarean delivery rate steadily increased from 8.9% in 1984 to 11.4% in 1988. Caesarean sections performed for [1] failure to progress in labour, [2] previous caesarean section and [3] preterm fetal compromise before labour accunted for three quarters of the increase. Breech presentation was not a significant contributor to the increase. The reasons for increase in caesarean sections performed for the failure to progress in the first stage of labour were not clarified in the records and is the subject of prospective investigation